Abstract:

A spine formation device includes a sheet conveyer, a presser, and a spine
formation member. The sheet conveyer conveys a bundle of folded sheets
with a folded portion of the bundle of sheets forming a front end portion
of the bundle of sheets. The presser is disposed downstream from the
sheet conveyer in a sheet conveyance direction in which the sheet
conveyer conveys the bundle of sheets. The presser is movable to press
opposed sides of the front end portion of the bundle of sheets. The spine
formation member is movably disposed downstream from the presser in the
sheet conveyance direction. The spine formation member includes a groove
portion that contacts and positions the bundle of sheets to define an
amount by which the bundle of sheets protrudes from the presser and a
spine formation face that forms a spine at the folded portion of the
bundle of sheets.

Claims:

1. A spine formation device comprising:a sheet conveyer that conveys a
bundle of folded sheets with a folded portion of the bundle of folded
sheets forming a front end portion of the bundle of folded sheets;a
presser disposed downstream from the sheet conveyer in a sheet conveyance
direction in which the sheet conveyer conveys the bundle of folded
sheets, the presser movable to press opposed sides of the front end
portion of the bundle of folded sheets conveyed with the sheet conveyer;
anda spine formation member movably disposed downstream from the presser
in the sheet conveyance direction,the spine formation member comprising a
groove portion and a spine formation face,the groove portion contacting
and positioning the bundle of folded sheets to define an amount by which
the bundle of folded sheets protrudes from the presser,the spine
formation face forming a spine at the folded portion of the bundle of
folded sheets.

2. The spine formation device according to claim 1, further comprising:a
first drive unit that moves the spine formation member in a thickness
direction of the bundle of folded sheets perpendicular to the sheet
conveyance direction;a switcher that switches positions of the groove
portion and the spine formation face relative to the front end portion of
the bundle of folded sheets; anda second drive unit that moves the spine
formation member in the sheet conveyance direction in which the bundle of
folded sheets is conveyed with the sheet conveyer.

3. The spine formation device according to claim 2, wherein a position of
the spine formation member at which the spine formation member positions
the bundle of folded sheets in the sheet conveyance direction is
identical to a position of the spine formation member at which the spine
formation member forms the spine at the folded portion of the bundle of
folded sheets.

4. The spine formation device according to claim 2, wherein the groove
portion of the spine formation member includes a plurality of grooves and
the switcher switches positions of the plurality of grooves according to
the number of sheets contained in the bundle of folded sheets.

5. The spine formation device according to claim 1, further comprising:a
third drive unit that moves the spine formation member in a thickness
direction of the bundle of folded sheets perpendicular to the sheet
conveyance direction, the third drive unit holding the spine formation
member at a distance from the presser;a switcher that switches positions
of the groove portion and the spine formation face relative to the front
end portion of the bundle of folded sheets; anda fourth drive unit that
moves the spine formation member back and forth in the sheet conveyance
direction in which the sheet conveyer conveys the bundle of folded
sheets,the fourth drive unit moving the spine formation member along the
folded portion of the bundle of folded sheets with the spine formation
face pressed against the folded portion of the bundle of folded sheets.

6. The spine formation device according to claim 1, wherein, in a state in
which the bundle of folded sheets is positioned with the groove portion
and pressed with the presser, the spine formation member, the presser,
and the bundle of folded sheets together define a space having a
cross-sectional area greater than a cross-sectional area of the groove
portion.

9. An image forming apparatus comprising a spine formation device,the
spine formation device comprising:a sheet conveyer that conveys the
bundle of folded sheets with a folded portion of the bundle of folded
sheets forming a front end portion of the bundle of folded sheets;a
presser disposed downstream from the sheet conveyer in a sheet conveyance
direction in which the sheet conveyer conveys the bundle of folded sheets
to accommodate the bundle of folded sheets, the presser movable to press
opposed sides of the front end portion of the bundle of folded sheets;
anda spine formation member movably disposed downstream from the presser
in the sheet conveyance direction,the spine formation member comprising a
groove portion and a spine formation face,the groove portion contacting
and positioning the bundle of folded sheets to define an amount by which
the bundle of folded sheets protrudes from the presser,the spine
formation face forming a spine at the folded portion of the bundle of
folded sheets.

10. A spine formation device comprising:conveying means for conveying a
bundle of folded sheets with a folded portion of the bundle of folded
sheets forming a front end portion of the bundle of folded
sheets;pressing means for pressing a front end portion of the bundle of
folded sheets conveyed with the conveying means in a sheet conveyance
direction; andspine formation means for forming a spine at the folded
portion of the bundle of folded sheets,the spine formation means
comprising a groove portion for positioning the bundle of folded sheets
and defines an amount by which the bundle of folded sheets protrudes from
the pressing means and a spine formation face for forming a spine at the
folded portion of the bundle of folded sheets.

Description:

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001]The present patent application claims priority pursuant to 35 U.S.C.
§119 from Japanese Patent Application Nos. 2009-066554, filed on
Mar. 18, 2009 and 2009-250802, filed on Oct. 30, 2009 in the Japan Patent
Office, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its
entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002]1. Field of the Invention

[0003]Illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a
device capable of reducing bulging of a saddle-stitched booklet or a
bundle of two-folded sheets, a system or device built into a folding
device or a saddle-stitching device, a spine formation device that is
built into a post processing device connected to the foregoing system or
device to perform post processing, such as cutting, on a bound book and
forms a spine of the bound book, and a system or apparatus including the
spine formation device.

[0004]2. Description of the Background

[0005]As a technique for straightening the spine of a booklet, for
example, a conventional approach like that described in JP-2001-260564-A
is known. The conventional apparatus includes a clamping unit disposed to
hold and fix a bundle of sheets (hereinafter "booklet"), folded so that a
spine portion of the booklet protrudes from the clamp unit, and a spine
forming unit movable in a longitudinal direction of the spine portion of
the booklet to press the spine and flatten it. By using the clamping unit
and the spine forming unit, the spine of the booklet is flattened
(deformed) to reduce bulging of the booklet. This reformation is
important for ease of storage and transport because the curved spine
causes the booklets to bulge and bulging booklets can be difficult to
stack, making it difficult to store or carry them. In the above-mentioned
approach, such bulging is reduced by flattening the spine of the booklet
so as to eliminate such inconvenience.

[0006]The above-described approach is now described in further detail with
reference to FIGS. 11-13. It can be seen that the amount by which the
spine protrudes from the clamping unit 12 is regulated by a flat stopper
14. However, in such a configuration, the sheets are freely movable in a
space between the clamping unit 12 and the stopper 14 as shown in FIGS.
11 and 12. Consequently, during positioning, a folded portion of the
booklet 13 may shift position as indicated by a circle area "A"
illustrated in FIG. 11. If the clamping unit 12 clamps the booklet 13 and
flattens the spine of the booklet 13 with a spine forming unit 18, the
spine may be deformed in an irregular shape as illustrated in FIG. 12.

[0007]The spine forming unit 18 is movable in the longitudinal direction
of the protruding portion of the booklet and applies enough pressure to
the spine to flatten the curvature of the spine. Although controlled
during spine formation, the pressure needed to flatten the curvature of
the spine fluctuates continuously and substantially. Consequently, the
distance between the spine forming unit 18 and the booklet also
continuously fluctuates, thus preventing the spine from being flattened.
In fact, as indicated by a portion "B" illustrated in FIG. 13, the spine
may be made wavy rather than straight, thus detracting from the booklet's
appearance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008]In one illustrative embodiment, a spine formation device includes a
sheet conveyer, a presser, and a spine formation member. The sheet
conveyer conveys a bundle of folded sheets with a folded portion of the
bundle of folded sheets forming a front end portion of the bundle of
folded sheets. The presser is disposed downstream from the sheet conveyer
in a sheet conveyance direction in which the sheet conveyer conveys the
bundle of folded sheets. The presser is movable to press opposed sides of
the front end portion of the bundle of folded sheets conveyed with the
sheet conveyer. The spine formation member is movably disposed downstream
from the presser in the sheet conveyance direction. The spine formation
member includes a groove portion and a spine formation face. The groove
portion contacts and positions the bundle of folded sheets to define an
amount by which the bundle of folded sheets protrudes from the presser.
The spine formation face forms a spine at the folded portion of the
bundle of folded sheets.

[0009]In another illustrative embodiment, an image forming apparatus
includes a spine formation device. The spine formation device includes a
sheet conveyer, a presser, and a spine formation member. The sheet
conveyer conveys a bundle of folded sheets with a folded portion of the
bundle of folded sheets forming a front end portion of the bundle of
folded sheets. The presser is disposed downstream from the sheet conveyer
in a sheet conveyance direction in which the sheet conveyer conveys the
bundle of folded sheets. The presser is movable to press opposed sides of
the front end portion of the bundle of folded sheets conveyed with the
sheet conveyer. The spine formation member is movably disposed downstream
from the presser in the sheet conveyance direction. The spine formation
member includes a groove portion and a spine formation face. The groove
portion contacts and positions the bundle of folded sheets to define an
amount by which the bundle of folded sheets protrudes from the presser.
The spine formation face forms a spine at the folded portion of the
bundle of folded sheets.

[0010]In still another illustrative embodiment, A spine formation device
includes conveying means, pressing means, and spine formation means. The
conveying means conveys a bundle of folded sheets with a folded portion
of the bundle of folded sheets forming a front end portion of the bundle
of folded sheets. The pressing means presses a front end portion of the
bundle of folded sheets conveyed with the conveying means in a sheet
conveyance direction. The spine formation means forms a spine at the
folded portion of the bundle of folded sheets. The spine formation means
includes a groove portion for positioning the bundle of folded sheets and
defines an amount by which the bundle of folded sheets protrudes from the
pressing means and a spine formation face for forming a spine at the
folded portion of the bundle of folded sheets.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011]A more complete appreciation of the disclosure and many of the
attendant advantages thereof will be readily acquired as the same becomes
better understood by reference to the following detailed description when
considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0012]FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a configuration of a spine
formation device according to an illustrative embodiment;

[0013]FIG. 2 is a schematic view illustrating operations and a state of
the spine formation device illustrated in FIG. 1 before a booklet goes
between press boards;

[0014]FIG. 3 is a schematic view illustrating an operation and a state of
the spine formation device illustrated in FIG. 1 when the booklet goes
between the press boards;

[0015]FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating an operation and a state of
the spine formation device illustrated in FIG. 1 when a front end portion
of the booklet is sandwiched with the press boards;

[0016]FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating operations and a state of
the spine formation device illustrated in FIG. 1 when a spine is formed
at the front end portion of the booklet;

[0017]FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating operations and a state of
the spine formation device illustrated in FIG. 1 after the formation of
the spine has been finished finished;

[0018]FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating an operation and a state of
the spine formation device illustrated in FIG. 1 when the booklet is
outputted;

[0019]FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a process of operations
executable in the spine formation device;

[0020]FIG. 9 is a schematic view illustrating an example of a deformation
space formed during the operation illustrated in FIG. 5;

[0021]FIG. 10 is a plan view illustrating a configuration of the spine
formation device that forms a spine of a booklet with a spine formation
cylinder;

[0022]FIG. 11 is a schematic view illustrating an operation of a
conventional type of spine formation device;

[0023]FIG. 12 is a schematic view illustrating an operation and a state of
a conventional type of spine formation device during formation of a spine
of a booklet; and

[0024]FIG. 13 is a schematic view illustrating an example of a spine
formed by a conventional type of spine formation device.

[0025]The accompanying drawings are intended to depict illustrative
embodiments of the present disclosure and should not be interpreted to
limit the scope thereof. The accompanying drawings are not to be
considered as drawn to scale unless explicitly noted.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

[0026]In describing embodiments illustrated in the drawings, specific
terminology is employed for the sake of clarity. However, the disclosure
of this patent specification is not intended to be limited to the
specific terminology so selected and it is to be understood that each
specific element includes all technical equivalents that operate in a
similar manner and achieve similar results.

[0027]Although the illustrative embodiments are described with technical
limitations with reference to the attached drawings, such description is
not intended to limit the scope of the present invention and all of the
components or elements described in the illustrative embodiments of this
disclosure are not necessarily indispensable to the present invention.

[0028]Below, illustrative embodiments according to the present disclosure
are described with reference to attached drawings.

[0029]FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a configuration of a spine
formation device 1000 according to an illustrative embodiment.

[0030]In FIG. 1, the spine formation device 1000 includes an upper guide
plate 102a, a lower guide plate 102b, an upper conveyance roller 101a, a
lower conveyance roller 101b, an upper press board 103a, a lower press
board 103b, and a spine formation board 104. The upper conveyance roller
101a and the lower conveyance roller 101b are disposed at the upper press
board 103a and the lower guide plate 102b, respectively. The upper press
board 103a is disposed above a downstream portion of an output opening
between the guide plates 102 and the lower press board 103b is disposed
below the downstream portion of the sheet output opening of the guide
plates 102. The spine formation board 104 serving as a spine formation
member is disposed at an exit of a press region between the upper press
board 103a and the lower press board 103b. In the present illustrative
embodiment, indices of "a" and "b" are attached to the respective pieces
of each pair component. However, when collectively referring to such
component pieces, the indices of "a" and "b" are omitted and only the
number code is attached to the component name for simplicity.

[0031]On one side of the spine formation board 104 opposing the press
boards 103, a spine formation face 104a, a first positioning groove 104b
for 21 to 30 sheets, a second positioning groove 104c for 11 to 20
sheets, and a third positioning groove 104d for 1 to 10 sheets are formed
in this order from an upper portion to a lower portion thereof. The upper
press board 103a and the lower press board 103b are driven with a driving
mechanism to move toward and away from each other. By moving toward each
other, the upper press board 103a and the lower press board 103b sandwich
and press a bundle of sheets (hereinafter also referred to as "booklet").
The spine formation board 104 is driven with a driving mechanism to move
up and down and move toward and away from the press boards 103. The
driving mechanisms include, e.g., a switching controller and driving
motors.

[0032]FIGS. 2 to 7 are schematic views illustrating operations of the
spine formation device 1000 illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is a flowchart
illustrating a process of operations of the spine formation device 1000.

[0033]The spine formation device 1000 introduces a booklet 100 from the
guide plates 102 and outputs the booklet 100 by performing the operations
illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 7. When the front end of the booklet 100 is
positioned as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the position of the spine
formation board 104 in the sheet conveyance direction remains the same as
when a spine of the booklet is formed as illustrated in FIG. 5. In the
present illustrative embodiment, as described above, the spine formation
board 104 includes three types of positioning grooves: the first
positioning groove 104b for 1 to 10 sheets, the second positioning groove
104c for 11 to 20 sheets, and the third positioning groove 104d for 21 to
30 sheets. It is to be noted that the number of types of positioning
grooves is not limited to three and may be any other suitable number. The
number of grooves and the association of grooves with available numbers
of sheets are set in response to a booklet conveyed. Processing with the
third positioning groove 104d, the second positioning groove 104c, and
the first positioning groove 104b correspond to processing at S104, S105,
and S106, respectively, described below with reference to FIG. 8.

[0034]In FIGS. 2 to 7, operations performed when the booklet 100 contains
30 sheets are illustrated.

[0035]As one example, the positioning grooves 104b to 104d may be
automatically switched according to information on the number of sheets
of the booklet conveyed. Alternatively, the positioning grooves 104b to
104d may be switched according to an external input value entered with an
operation-and-input unit such as an operation panel. In FIG. 8, selection
and switching of the positioning grooves 104b, 104c, and 104d are
performed according to determination results at S103 of the number of
sheets to be bound.

[0036]In performing spine formation, as illustrated in FIG. 8, an initial
operation is performed at S101, the press boards 103a and 103b move to
respective booklet-receive positions, and the conveyance rollers 101a and
101b are positioned so as to be ready for receiving a booklet 100. Then,
the conveyance rollers 101a and 101b start rotating at S102 to feed the
booklet 100 from the guide plates 102a and 102b. At S103, information on
the number of sheets to be bound as the booklet 100 is acquired from an
image forming apparatus, not illustrated, and at S104, S105, and S106 the
positioning grooves 104b, 104c, and 104d are positioned according to the
information acquired. In this example, as described above, since the
number of sheets of the booklet 100 is assumed to be 30 sheets, the
process goes to S106.

[0037]At S106, before the booklet 100 goes between the press boards 103a
and 103b, the press boards 103a and 103b move toward each other up to a
predetermined distance as indicated by an arrow 1 in FIG. 2. Then, as
indicated by an arrow 2, the spine formation board 104 moves from the
position illustrated in FIG. 1 to a position at which the first
positioning groove 104b opposes the exit of the press boards 103, and
moves to contact the rear side of the press boards 103 as indicated by an
arrow 3 of FIG. 2. From this state, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the
conveyance rollers 101 convey the booklet 100 into a gap between the
press boards 103. At S107, when a front end portion 100L of the booklet
100 contacts the first positioning groove 104b, the conveyance rollers
101 stop. At S108, the press boards 103 are pushed toward each other,
i.e., in directions indicated by arrows 4 of FIG. 3 to hold the booklet
100.

[0038]Next, as illustrated in FIG. 4, at S109 the spine formation board
104 moves in a direction indicated by an arrow 5 toward the downstream
side in the booklet conveyance direction. At S110, as illustrated in FIG.
5, the spine formation board 104 moves down in a direction indicated by
an arrow 6 to a position at which the spine formation face 104a opposes
the front end portion 100L of the booklet 100. At S111, the spine
formation board 104 moves in a direction indicated by an arrow 7 toward
the upstream side of the booklet conveyance direction and is pressed
against the rear side of the press boards 103. Thus, the front end
portion 100L of the booklet 100 is pressed by the spine formation board
104 and deformed along a cross-sectional shape of the press boards 103 to
form a spine of the booklet 100. When the spine formation is finished, as
illustrated in FIG. 6, at S112 the spine formation board 104 moves in a
direction indicated by an arrow 8 and is separated from the press boards
103. At S113, the spine formation board 104 moves down in a direction
indicated by an arrow 9 illustrated in FIG. 6. At S114, the press boards
103a and 103b move to predetermined separated positions. Thus, the spine
formation process is finished. At S115, the booklet 100 is conveyed by
the conveyance rollers 101 and outputted from the press boards 103. At
S116, it is determined whether the output operation of the booklet 100
has been finished. If the output operation has not been finished ("NO" at
S116), at S117 operations of the entire system including the spine
formation device are stopped. Alternatively, if the output operation has
been finished ("YES" at S116), at S118 the conveyance rollers 101 are
stopped, and the process ends.

[0039]In the above-described determination step at S103, if the number of
sheets to be bound is 1 to 10 sheets, at S104 the third positioning
groove 104d moves to a position along the conveyance path of the booklet
100, e.g., a position along a conveyance center line of the booklet 100
conveyed by the conveyance rollers 101. Alternatively, if the number of
sheets to be bound is 11 to 20, the second positioning groove 104c moves
to a position along the conveyance path of the booklet 100, e.g., a
position along a conveyance center line of the booklet 100 conveyed by
the conveyance rollers 101. Then, the above-described process of S7 and
subsequent steps is executed.

[0040]In the spine formation device 1000 of the above-described
configuration, the spine formation board 104 has a length covering a
length of the spine of the booklet 100 and spreads the front end portion
100L of the booklet 100 into a substantially-closed deformation space at
the exit side of the press boards 103. Thus, the spine of the booklet 100
is formed in a substantially flat shape at the front end portion 100L of
the booklet 100 with the spine formation face 104a serving as a spine
formation portion.

[0042]In FIG. 9, the shape of two rooms "R" surrounded by the first
positioning groove 104b of the spine formation board 104, the press
boards 103a and 103b, and the booklet 100 is defined so that a total
cross-sectional area of two rooms "R" is greater than a cross-sectional
area of the first positioning groove 104b. For such a configuration, in
the spine formation illustrated in FIG. 5, the front end portion 100L of
the booklet 100 is forced into the rooms "R" and deformed along the shape
of the rooms "R", thus forming a well-looking spine shape.

[0043]In FIG. 10, as the spine formation member, a spine formation
cylinder 104CL is employed instead of the spine formation board 104. As
described above, in the spine formation board 104, the spine forming
portion 104a of a straight shape (along a vertical direction in FIG. 1)
and the first to three positioning grooves 104b to 104d are formed on the
side of the spine formation board 104 opposing the press boards 103. By
contrast, the spine formation cylinder 104CL includes the spine formation
face 104a, the first positioning groove 104b, the second positioning
groove 104c, and the third positioning groove 104d formed in a ring shape
along the outer peripheral surface. Further, as described above, the
spine formation board 104 moves toward and away from the press boards 103
by the reciprocating linear motion. By contrast, the spine formation
cylinder 104CL presses the front end portion 100L of the booklet 100
while moving in the longitudinal direction of the front end portion 100L
to from a spine of the booklet 100 in a process similar to that described
in FIG. 8.

[0044]In this example, since the spine formation cylinder 104CL forms the
spin face of the booklet 100 while moving on a spine portion of the
booklet 100 in the longitudinal direction of the booklet 100, the load in
the spine formation is reduced. Accordingly, even if the strength with
which the press boards 103 holds the booklet 100 is not so great, the
spine formation is successfully performed, allowing a reduction in
manufacturing cost. It is to be noted that the spine formation board 104
may be advantageous over the spine formation cylinder 104CL in
productivity since the spine formation board 104 needs less moving time.

[0045]The spine formation device 1000 illustrated in FIG. 1 or 10 is
operatively provided with or mounted in an apparatus capable of
processing a bundle of sheets or a booklet, such as a saddle-stitch
bookbinding apparatus having a saddle-stitch mechanism, a sheet-edge
cutting apparatus having a sheet-edge cutting mechanism, or an image
forming apparatus.

[0046]As described above, the spine formation device according to the
present illustrative embodiments includes the press boards 103 that press
the front end portion 100L of the booklet 100 and the spine formation
board 104 (or the spine formation cylinder 104CL) having the spine
forming portion 104a that forms a spine at a folded portion of the
booklet 100 and the first to third positioning grooves 104b to 104d that
position the booklet 100 to define the amount by which the booklet 100
protrudes from the press boards 103. As the spine of the booklet 100 is
formed with the press boards 103 and the spine formation board 104, the
spine of the booklet 100 is formed along a flat shape of the spine
formation board 104, thus preventing deformation and waving of the spine
shape.

[0047]Numerous additional modifications and variations are possible in
light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that
within the scope of the appended claims, the disclosure of the present
invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described
herein.

[0048]With some embodiments of the present invention having thus been
described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways.
Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the scope of
the present invention, and all such modifications are intended to be
included within the scope of the present invention.

[0049]For example, elements and/or features of different illustrative
embodiments may be combined with each other and/or substituted for each
other within the scope of this disclosure and appended claims.